UKRAINE, Donetsk : Pro-Russian activists guard a barricade set at the Donetsk regional council office building on the eastern city of Donetsk on April 7, 2014. Ukraine’s embattled prime minister today accused Russia of trying to “dismember” his country by plotting seizures of government buildings in eastern regions that are seeking to break away from Kiev. AFP PHOTO/ ALEXANDER KHUDOTEPLY

“I’ve begun to view the still image as an entry point—rather than definitive statement or document—suggesting a much larger discussion, in which I find it essential to expand the frame of the photographic canvas to include the interaction. In making images, I consent to the myriad of possibilities that lie in wait. I recognize the importance of the interaction that precedes the pressing of the shutter, yet acknowledge the powerlessness that occurs when a photograph is created and moves forward beyond my own subjective desires and intents. Subsequently, I hope to eventually find comfort in my understanding of photography as a disobedient art form and my own attempts, successes, and failures.” - A passage from an article written by Kate Fowler in The Oxford American - Click here for the full article.

I’ve gotten a serious influx of new followers since I posted that short write-up of my meeting with Christine Tupou last week, so I thought I’d re-introduce myself and the project that I took those photos for. Also, I need to take a break from writing my thesis paper before I go cross-eyed.

My name is Ellamarie Quimby and I’m an artist, photographer and educator living in Washington, DC. My mother was born & raised in Ngaraard, Palau in the Caroline Islands of the Pacific Ocean, and my father was born to an Irish-Catholic immigrant family in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This is my face!

I run the Photography department at the Appel Farm Arts & Music Center Summer Art Camp in Elmer, New Jersey. I also teach art and facilitate events for toddlers and young children at Little Loft Community Art Space in Washington, DC. I am student teaching at an elementary school in Washington, DC and I have previously student taught at a high school in Virginia. I completed a BFA in Fine Art Photography at the Corcoran College of Art+Design in Washington, DC in 2013, and I am currently a Master’s in Teaching Candidate at the same institution with an expected graduation date of May 2014.

Recently, I have begun work on what I hope to be a very long and fruitful project. As an American of mixed Pacific descent, I have spent a large part of my life trying to identify how my mother’s cultural heritage informs my day-to-day life. It is difficult, sometimes, for people of Pacific Islands descent living outside the Islands to stay grounded in their cultural heritage. The more I examine this phenomena and the difficulties associated with it, the more I felt it necessary to begin documenting my experiences, and the experiences of my peers.

I am actively trying to connect with immigrants from the Pacific Islands living in the US, and 1st generation American children of Pacific immigrants. The conversations that I have had so far with the handful of individuals that have reached out to me have been nothing short of mind-blowing. I find it especially interesting that, while many of the experiences I have gotten to hear about have been fairly similar, each conversation has tended to revolve around one or two very specific ideas/issues.

For example, one conversation revolved around existing as a sub-culture within an already small community- they were talking specifically about identifying as Queer and the reaction their family had to their coming out. During another, myself and the two young women I spoke with talked for a long time about language acquisition and what it means to look like we belong. My conversation with Christine, like I noted in that write-up, was largely about how we, as young PIs in the States, can use our skills and talents to build communities and resources for ourselves.

These are the kinds of conversations that I feel like I’ve been lacking for the better part of my adolescence, if not my entire life. I am trying to use my skills to build my own community, just like I told Christine, and so far the response I’ve gotten has been amazing.

If you are interested in learning more about this work, or you’re interested in being a part of it, I would absolutely LOVE to talk to you more. I want to see what your life looks like, what kinds of things you think about, how you keep your heritage alive and present. If you have reservations or concerns, please voice them to me and we can discuss the level of participation that you may be interested in.

As a note, I am not currently able to travel more than 6-8 hours from DC for this work. If this means we may not be able to meet up in person, please DO NOT let that deter you from contacting me. My schedule may open up, I may find a week to get out west, and we can certainly at least begin a dialogue that I hope to continue for a long time. Please email me at: equimby@gmail.com as opposed to sending me a Tumblr message- I often do not get notifications of messages and I dislike the format of Tumblr messaging.

If you haven’t seen any of the work that I’ve done for this project already, please visit An Ocean in Our Blood: Documenting Pacific Lives in the US. This tag includes essays, research, notes, and original photographs and writing that have and will continue to steer this work. I have noted specifically which images and essays are mine. View Christine’s write up here, and the write up from my meeting with Hanna and Manihere.

I found this odd lens attachment that I have no idea where it came from. We just moved and I was going through some boxes of stuff I’ve been carting around and found this odd lens attachment, and I have no idea where it came from. It’s a partial fish-eye macro lens and it doesn’t fit ANY of my cameras. However, I found that if I hold it up backwards to my camera, this is the effect that is given, which is kinda neat.

I headed down to Manhattan Beach for Earth Hour because they turn off all the lights on the pier for the hour and I thought it would be pretty neat to photograph it. This time around, a company donated 500 LED candles so that people could walk the pier and it would illuminate the pier in a fun way.

The Mayor was there and there also was an “instameet” that was taking place. I got there around 1830 and found where I wanted to be and set up my tripod. The lights were supposed to be shut off at 1930, but didn’t get shut off until 2030. By this time, there wasn’t 500 people there (I’m not sure that there was at the peak volume of people - it was windy and cold and I think a lot of folks didn’t want to stay).

I had an idea in my mind as to what this would look like, and it didn’t quite come out that way. I expected that the LED lights would be cooler in temperature, rather than the warm colors and I also expected that there would be a lot more people there. Had there been, I think this would have lit reallllly well. Other issues that I didn’t think about was the fact that where I set up was a wind bluff and while it provided the vantage point that I wanted, it meant that the breeze became something I had to contend with. I used shoelaces and tied my tripod (which is a standard $150 lightweight metal Calumet version, not the really good heavy carbon ones that don’t move at all) to the metal railing and then I used a few bags to keep the legs steady. Sadly, between the water hitting the pier and shaking it coupled with the wind gusts hitting my camera, things were still a bit shaky for really good long exposures.

This weekend I went to a screening of “Tales of the City” at The Hammer Museum - It was wonderful to see on the big screen. Afterwards, Armistead Maupin hung around for a Q/A session and it was a real treat to see/hear. It was neat to hear about some of the backstory to character development and plot twists in this series that means so much to so many people.